Return from Extinction

July 1, 2020

Gr 3-7-Readers may not initially feel compelled to care about the plight of the deafeningly loud marine mammals known as elephant seals. Admittedly, neither did Richards, who recounts pulling her car over during a trip to Hearst Castle in California and becoming fascinated. In a thorough overview featuring accessible language and humor that complements the text, Richards creates a compelling journey. Her style could be described as Mary Roach for children. Using photos and well-crafted text, Richards outlines what makes these amazing creatures so distinctive (bodies the size of a bus, the ability to recognize one another's voices and to become watertight). She also tells a story that is both new and familiar; while elephant seals were once hunted sparingly by Native Americans, European settlers preyed upon them mercilessly, leading to virtual extinction. Later, conservation efforts issued by the Mexican government, such as banning the hunting of northern elephant seals and designating Guadalupe Island as a biological reserve, gave the seals a chance to recover and return to the Pacific Coast. There are almost a quarter million alive today. The straightforward language means this text can be read by older elementary students, but the complex sociobiological history and charismatic tone make it appealing to students in late middle school. VERDICT An ecological success story with humor and heart that earns its place in any middle grade library.-Mallory Weber, Convent of the Sacred Heart, NY

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August 1, 2020
Once thought to be extinct, northern elephant seals have returned by the thousands to rest and recuperate, breed and give birth on beaches up and down North America's Pacific coast. Prompted by her unforgettable first sight of hundreds of elephant seals resting on a beach near San Simeon, California, and learning that these seals had been reported extinct at the end of the 19th century, journalist and novelist Richards tells this "good-news story" as if she were sharing her excited discoveries with a friend. Her narrative is loosely organized into four sections: a physical and social description; a history of the species; what their lives are like over a year that includes two migrations; and, more generally, threats, research, and where readers might see them themselves. Elephant seals, named for the male's large and mobile nose, are astonishing creatures. They're really, really big--a male might weigh up to 5,000 pounds. And, they can be really, really loud, louder than a plane taking off. There are plenty of facts, but some seem arbitrarily selected, appear out of the expected context, or are plain wrong (how a fish uses its tail). A nice mix of photographs, many her own, enliven the pages. Each is labeled by source, and most are captioned. This first effort at natural-history nonfiction endearingly reflects the author's enthusiasm. (glossary, resources, acknowledgments, index [not seen]) (Nonfiction. 9-14)

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